Which is a Better Option to Store Passwords, LastPass or 1Password?

If you’re running an online business, your first concern is online security. Online security is one of the most important concerns because of hundreds of security threats you may encounter such as adware, ransomware, trojans and other threats.

So as your business grows, you begin looking for the professional services through which you can really protect your data. You will find different options in the market with unique credentials that sound promising.

According to the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the data lost in terms of money has risen up to 29% since 2013. To help protect your data, password managers are a great help.

It’s hard to remember long and complex passwords for your different accounts online. Password manager apps not only remember your password but keep them secure. Password manager tools and apps are widely used in corporate businesses these days because they decrease the likelihood of a data loss or security breach.

It’s difficult to find the best password management tool or app that can satisfy your needs for the company especially managers, executive, sales and IT personnel. We have explored the top 2 password managers and will present an overview, differences, similarities, functionality, pricing and approach to password security.

1Password Overview

1Password is sold as a one-user licensed product. Recently, they have added subscription-based alternative services for businesses and families. For example, you can get the password stored on your computer through your Android device.

This product is offered at two prices: 1) Standard for $3.99 per month 2) Pro for $11.99 per month. Both packages come with unlimited sharing of passwords, access control from mobile and desktop application and automatic syncing features.

The unlimited data sharing for the Standard plan is limited to 1 GB and 5GB for the Pro versions. In addition to that, the Pro version offers you role-based control and activity logging. Both subscription-based and on-premise 1Password is available for a 30-day trial.

LastPass Overview

Founded in 2008, Last Pass was acquired by Citrix in July 2016 after being sold to LogMeIn in 2015. LastPass is a cloud-based application that you can install on your computer and there’s an extension for different browsers. In addition to that, there are versions available for your Android, iOS, Windows Phone and Blackberry. Unfortunately, the new update of BlackBerry OS doesn’t support LastPass anymore.

LastPass is available in three different packages: Free, Premium & Enterprise.

With the free version of LastPass, you will be able to use all the basic features of password storing. Unfortunately with the free version, you won’t be able to sync passwords with other devices, users, or access any of the advanced features you can find in paid versions. However, storing passwords, retrieving them and automatically filling the passwords are the features you get in the free version which is better than no password manager.

The premium plan provides you additional multi-factor options: create folders for your shared passwords, cross-device synchronization, and biometric authentication for all the compatible devices. You can purchase the premium version for $12 per year per user.

The Enterprise version comes with 2 packages: per-user licensing and site-based licensing. Per-user licensing starts from $24/year. On the other hand, Site-based licensing depends on the number of users and required services or support options. Both Premium and Enterprise offer you unlimited sharing of passwords and folders, active directory, a centralized administration console, single-sign-on support and customizable user permissions.

1Password Vs LastPass

Both of these options are a strong choice for password managers but one may fit better for your business needs. Both apps offer you pre-built integration or LDAP/Active Directory; however, 1Password can be very difficult when it comes to doing bulk updates. You have to manually add or remove team members and passwords assigned to them for different accounts.

The good thing about LastPass Enterprise version is that it can automatically change the password for all your members and accounts. Let’s say you have a breach in your system and in such case, you can change all the passwords on your entire system within a matter of seconds. Also, this feature comes in handy when any of your employees have left the job and you need to assign his/her account to a new employee with new passwords.

LastPass offers you authentication-based system security while 1Password offers you authentication-based and encryption-based system security.

Know the difference between the two

The authentication-based system allows access to the administration through a Master Password. If you provide the right password that was set by the authenticator, you will be able to access the administration console. Master Passwords are usually a backdoor that allow access to your administration console in case you’ve forgotten your password. You can then make changes to the passwords and regain access to your important accounts.

On the other hand, a backdoor method isn’t compatible with the encryption-based system security to reset a lost encryption key.

Both 1Password and LastPass use authentication-based security over a network for their cloud-based services. However, 1Password’s installed option allows you to create a Master Password through cryptography and all authentications take place on your machine. It means that you have to provide your passwords and encryption to access administration which makes it more secure. Moreover, 1Password lacks multi-factor authentication like LastPass.

If you’re concerned more about your security, then 1Password’s locally installed version should be your first choice. However, usability is also important. Both 1Password and LastPass offer user-friendly options that allow even less-savvy employees to create and make changes to passwords.

Conclusion

1Password and LastPass provide you with outstanding and reliable security of your business. Also, both make it easier for you to create and store passwords on your system, and share them. These applications can be a real help to avoid the problems of password management like using exponentially easier to guess passwords or using the same password for different accounts.

Your choice really depends on your business needs, OS environment and the amount of users you have. You can use the one that best suits your unique situation. According to us, LastPass is better in terms of user-friendly interface and usability while 1Password provides comparatively better security.